Scottish giants Celtic and Rangers have never been a part of the English football pyramid – but we’ve simulated what might happen if they were added to it.

There has been a long debate over how Scotland’s two biggest and most successful clubs would perform if they were inserted into an English men’s league.

That debate has now extended to women’s football, with The Times’ Molly Hudson reporting that the two clubs have held ‘initial talks’ over joining the Women’s Super League.

Such a move would cause even more significant controversy, as it is Glasgow City – not Celtic or Rangers – that are Scotland’s most successful club, with 16 top division titles to their name since the Scottish Women’s Premier League began in 2002.

On Thursday evening, Rangers‘ men’s team lost 2-1 to Manchester United at Old Trafford.

While United should have arguably finished the game off earlier than Bruno Fernandes’ stoppage-time winner, Philippe Clement’s side kept themselves in the match and equalised through Cyril Dessers after Jack Butland’s own goal had given the hosts the lead.

Following the match, we added Celtic and Rangers to the English Premier League using Football Manager 2024 – and here’s what the simulation came up with:

Celtic and Rangers in the Premier League

In an outcome that may surprise fans, Celtic were relegated from the top flight of English football in their first season.

Brendan Rodgers’ side did rack up 26 points, with six victories, but that wasn’t enough to keep them up.

Five of Celtic’s six wins came at home, including a shock 2-1 victory over Chelsea, while their sole away victory was a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest in May that maintained hope of survival.

They did reach the fifth round of the FA Cup, where they lost to Southampton, but suffered a third round exit in the Carabao Cup to Leicester. Champions League success wasn’t forthcoming either as the Scottish giants were dumped out in the group stage.

Rangers, though, were an altogether different story – and an outcome that would shock fans based on their real-life record this season.

Philippe Clement’s side managed to stay up by a point, thanks to winning eight and drawing 11 matches across the season.

They finished comfortably ahead of their Old Firm rivals by nine points, though did lose at Celtic Park and could only draw 1-1 in the reverse league clash at Ibrox.

Rangers picked up five away wins in the league, with the most impressive of those being a 2-1 win over Newcastle at St James’ Park.

They only won one match at home, but no side put more than three goals past the Gers at Ibrox.

Like Celtic, though, Rangers had a mixed season in the cups, only reaching the fourth round of the FA Cup but matching that run in the Carabao Cup, where they lost to Manchester United.

Which division do you think Celtic and Rangers would be competitive in if they entered the English football pyramid? Let us know in the comments below.

Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce side take on Rangers in the Europa League on Thursday evening and the Portuguese boss has expressed an interest in managing his next opponents – as well as rivals Celtic.

Mourinho has had a long and successful career managing in Portugal, England, Italy, Spain and now Turkey but Scotland has a special place in his heart as that is where he first did his coaching badges back in the 1990s.

And ahead of the clash with two-time Europa League finalists Rangers, Mourinho did admit he would be open to taking charge of any of Glasgow’s big two in the future – though stressed he is happy with his current job.

Speaking in his press conference, Mourinho said: “In this moment, no, because I have a job that motivates me and a job that demands loyalty. But why not in the future?

“People can say that the Scottish league is a league of two teams, but it’s a league of passion It’s a league of passion. And for me, passion in football is everything.

“For me, to play in empty stadiums, to play in competitions where there is not that fire of the passion doesn’t make any sense.

“And Celtic and Rangers, they are big clubs with big fan bases, with big emotions, big responsibilities, big expectations. Why not?

“But in this moment, I have a job. Celtic has a fantastic coach like Brendan (Rodgers). Rangers has (Barry) Ferguson now, so full respect for them and I’m not searching for a new job.”

But how would Mourinho fare in the SPFL? We gave ‘the Special One’ both jobs on Football Manager and here’s what the simulation came up with:

Mourinho as manager of Celtic and Rangers

At Celtic, Mourinho stormed to yet another league title – accruing 96 points and losing just two games across the domestic campaign to finish 20 points clear of Rangers.

New signing Maxi Gomez, formerly of Valencia and Trabzonspor, was in fine form and hit 23 goals in 46 appearances in all competitions.

They did not progress from the Champions League group stage and suffered a shock Scottish Cup exit to Livingston in the fourth round – although they did go all the way in the Premier Sports Cup.

However things were not as successful at Ibrox for Mourinho. In the league, Rangers finished second to Celtic – finishing a whopping 28 points behind and just three points ahead of Aberdeen in third.

In the Champions League, Rangers did not even reach the group stage after being eliminated by Austrian side Sturm Graz in the third qualifying round.

They then dropped into the Europa League but were beaten by Sevilla in the knockout play-off.

Hibs beat Mourinho’s men in the Scottish Cup quarter-final, with the team reaching the next round in the Premier Sports Cup but being knocked out by Celtic.

Danilo was the club’s top scorer with 27 goals in 47 games, with Cyriel Dessers following behind with 15.